4 essential traits of pool staff
Hiring, training and scheduling the best pool staff for an aquatic facility is a big aspect of pool management. Pool staff and lifeguards are key to the overall safety of the pool area.
Lifeguards are the first line of defense when it comes to accidents. Therefore, it’s important to find and hire the right individuals for this essential job. Between writing the job descriptions, posting them and contacting applicants, it can be easy to overlook the most essential traits of pool staff. Here is a list of four aspects that you’ll want to keep in mind while interviewing.
1. Responsible: A strong sense of responsibility is needed for lifeguards. It’s important to show up on time for every scheduled shift, and a day that a lifeguard is late means more work has to be done in a short amount of time. Stress how essential being a lifeguard is to pool safety and how it affects everyone involved.
2. Attentive: Pools are one of the most difficult venues to maintain. Properly balanced pool water is important to ensure that the pool is safe to swim in. Tracking the chemical levels and administering treatments is a difficult, but important task. The smallest changes can have a large impact, and it’s up to employees to notice these signs and act accordingly. Make sure you are aware of the required training required for pool staff in charge of chemical maintenance.
3. Friendly and approachable: Whether you’re hiring a lifeguard or a poolside attendant, it’s a guest-facing job that requires good communication skills and a willingness to speak with strangers. A pool is reliant on its participants for revenue, and answering questions, addressing concerns and providing further information are important tasks. This means that employees should be approachable and know how to carry themselves professionally at the same time.
4. Prepared: The Lifeguard Training Stand blog pointed out that always being ready is essential to being a lifeguard. This can be true for all employees who work poolside. If, for example, a guest has a heart attack, the lifeguard may be the first to reach the individual, and having a calm and quick response makes all the difference.
Ensure your pool’s safety for peak season by interviewing for lifeguards well before the season arrives. This will give you enough time to assess every interviewee and decide which ones are best suited for your facility. If you have any questions, reach out to your local pool company to discuss lifeguard staffing best practices.
